Kings Marine Newsletter - Winter 2009

Another 'strange weather' Summer. We've had some really very good weather through September. It's starting to get colder as October progesses, but even still, crossing the Solent after a visit to the Island on the 9th was a pleasant experience, sitting on the deck in the sun.

The picture above was taken across Chertsey Meads in late November 2009, by the bridge looking south across the meads to the sales pontoon at Bates Wharf.

It's time for Winterisation

Sunny and colder is the forecast for the end of October with average night time temperatures down to 4 degrees. Low enough to see a few frosts. An unwinterised engine and doemstics can silently succumb to the cold weather, with an expensive repair bill to follow. We're now booking for winterisation services through to mid November. For any pre-booking for our Gold Winterise service made before the end of October, we'll hold our 2008 all-inclusive prices and given the current economic turmoil, give an extra 5% discount for booking early.

Winterisation Tasks

We're often asked what should be included in a Winterising a boat so we've produced a guide. In it we outline the sorts of tasks that you should consider for winterising. Just about every boat we have worked on is different in some way or another, so this won't be the definitive answer to everything, but it should hopefully help to point you in the right direction. Click for the Boat Winterisation Tasks page.

Cheap Red Diesel is no longer...

It's finally here, from 1st November 2008, full duty is now to be charged on diesel fuel used for marine propuslion.

There were many ideas around on how the new tax regime was to be implemented. Red diesel dye will remain detectable in boat tanks for some years to come, and fuel for heating is still at the old tax rate. The new regime changes nothing about where you get your fuel from. You will still buy the same fuel from the same places. However, how you pay for it is what changes. Boaters will need to declare to the fuel seller the proportion of fuel purchased that will be used for heating versus propulsion. Duty and therefore the amount to pay will be worked out for each part of the fuel supplied. Clearly the split between propulsion and heating can only be an estimate. The taxman has worked out the figures to be on average 60% for propulsion and 40% for heating, although if you know yours is different, you need to declare it. (e.g no domestic heating!) For more information, see the update on the BMF web site at www.britishmarine.co.uk

Thames Lock Closures 2007/2008.

Usually at this time of year, we'll outline the major lock closures on the lower Thames. The Environment Agency recently furnished us with a list of lock closures for this winter. There aren't any on the lower Thames! The only two that might be relevant to boating on the lower Thames are

• -Marlow - 3 November 2008 to 16 January 2009
  Tail lock cut bank protection and lock gate re-sheeting

• -Cookham - 10 November 2008 to 27 March 2009
  Head lock cut bank protection and new out of hours public power

For more information have a look at the Environment Agency's web site here.

And finally...

The Great British Duck Race - New World record

On the 31st August 175,000 little blue plastic ducks made their way down a specially prepared 1km course from Hampton Court lock, breaking the world record for a duck race and raising funds for three charities. See more at the VisitThames web site

Also.. don't forget our current offers...

Final clearance of inflatable Yam dinghies, ideal as tenders.

Yamaha's last 'Yam by Zodiac' inflatables from their 2007 end of season sale. We have the 220T, 240T, 240S and 275S available from stock. All are at leat 25% off, and the 240S is 30% off. These are built to last by Zodiac in Western Europe and are remarkably light weight too. For example, the old Yam 380 was 90Kg, the new Yam by Zodiac 380s is 52Kg, and its just as hard wearing.

New Mobile Workshop Unit.

In response to the needs fo those whose craft can't travel to us, Kings Marine have now invested in a fully equipped mobile workshop. With all the tools and technology required for a full maintenance service, we are now equipped to provide the same professional service from a mobile workshop that is usually provided from the marina workshop.

See our special offers page for pricing details on the Yam by Zodiac inflatable boats and Yamaha outboards

As usual, if you have any marine power questions, please feel free to give us a call. We have a team of fully trained technicians for Yamaha, Mercruiser, Volvo, Yanmar and we provide service for Mercury too.

Rod King and the team at Kings Marine.